"Hidden History of Kingsbridge"

Kingsbridge Avenue originates at Terrace View Avenue, in the Marble Hill section of the Bronx. Marble Hill was at one time a part of the island of Manhattan, but was cut off when a shipping channel was dug.

Kingsbridge is so named because it once led to the first bridge connecting the island of Manhattan with the mainland. It was called the King's Bridge. (This was before the Revolutionary War.) It was via the King's Bridge that George Washington re-entered Manhattan after the British left for the last time. This is the basis for the name of the entire area, the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx.

Modern-day Kingsbridge Avenue is mainly residential, and for most of it, lined with apartment buildings of five or six storeys. Many of them are walk-up buildings, built in the early part of the twentieth century. The main shopping area is 231st street, with many small stores and service businesses, such as dry cleaners and nail salons. There is a branch of the New York Public Library on 231st Street. There is a Target and a Stop n' Shop in the neighborhood. The Fiftieth Police Precinct is located on the corner of Kingsbridge Avenue near its end at 238th Street.